Traffic signal



Nov. 12, 1929. L. 'M. TOR-RENCE TRAFFIC S IGNAL Filed June 1927INVENTOR. LEO M.TORRENCE 54am.

ATTORNEY.

UNITED 1.;

LE0 in. TORRENCE, or Anmnerroy, KANsAsAssIc-Non "r'o so or ARnmerjon,ansas Patented Nov. 12, 1929 TRAFFIC SIGNAL Application filed June's,1927. sen-a1 No; 196,266,.

of the street intersections.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a rotary trafficsignal having a stationary member with thenamesof the street on which itis located. r

'A still further object of my invention. is to provide a signalrotatable by mechanical 'power.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a signal devicehaving a single, un-

colored lamp.

These and other objects will hereinafter be more fully explained.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a pedestal mounted signal, parts broken awayfor convenience of V illustration.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the device, parts broken away; for convenienceof lllustration. i Fig. 3 is an enlarged detailed view ofthe turningmechanism, partly in section.

F ig. 4is a sectional plan view of Fig. 3,

taken on line IVIV in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a side view of the'rotary arm partly in section. Y

Fig. 6 is a plan view of Fig. 5, parts removed for convenience ofillustration.

The mechanism herein disclosed consists of a rotary signal devicemounted on a pedestal and is arranged to be centrally posi- .tioned atthe intersection of streets or other public highways. The signal to he arotats the pedestal is a housing 2, having tangentially positionedindicia plates :3, the draw- Y ings herein disclosed show four of saidplates, the object of which is that the said plates will transverselyposition to the streets "MAneaREm ronnnlvcn,

or highways as -co ntro'lling means forthe trafhe on which'theyconfront, the plates extending and facing in opposite directions W111read the same signal and be'discernible to the traffic traveling inopposite directions. on the same street or highway.

It will be understoodthat the movements of the rotation will beini'quadrants successlvely, the indicia plate always: stoppingtransversely to the street'that it controls,v the. plate extendinginopposite direction will also face 1n opposite direction and will havethe word Stop? thereon, the transversely positioned plate will have theword Go? on each side-thereof, and willlikewiseflface in oppositedirection. 7 if Note that rearwardly positioned toeach of said plates isa housing-'2, triangular in shape; in'other words the rear Walls thereofextend obllquely and connect near the inner end ofthetransversely-positioned plate, the said walls function as a reflector.

The indicia plates consist 1 of a glass ,4,

rigidly positioned in the housing and in close proximity and rearwardlypositioned there-; i

to is an opaque plate 5, saidplate preferably made of sheet-metal. andhaving apertures which the light flows rendering it possible;

for the traffic to discern the signal and as the present custom is, theplate having the word Stop thereon will be red, and the one having theword Go thereon will be green.

Transversely positioned-to the indicia plates are glass panels 6 coloredto correspond withthe glass in front of said plates,

the said panels function as a substitute, and should the glass in saidplate become broken the color will still be maintained. I

vConcentrically positioned, onv the first said housing and upwardlyextending therefrom is a housing -7 having glass. panels Son the fourvertical sides thereof, the said glass being colored to correspond withthe indicia glass in the same vertical plane therewith.

On the under side of the first said housing is a downwardly extendingportion 9 havi g a ball rac con ent ca y p s t on d as at A, the saidrace to register with the race in tation of the'housing; downwardlyextending from said bearing is a pipe 10, said pipe being rigidlyattached to the member 9, r0-

tatable therewith and having means on its extreme lower end by which thehousing is rotated; positioned within the member 9 is a reflector ll, asintensifying means for an electric lamp, and its functions ashereinafter described. I r

On a vertical plane with the indicia plates are web members engagingwith the corners of the housing, functioning as blinds to obscure fromView the illuminated glass panel rearwardly positioned thereto inhousing7.

' The socket 14 functions as a bearing for the upwardlyextending arms18, on which is positioned a housing 19, around which the first saidhousing revolves, the last said housing is preferably made of sheet"metal having letters cut therethrough similar to stencil or perforationand aligned to form the letters. 1

In each of the'four sides of said housings will be the names of thestreets intersecting for convenience of the traflic, for example, thesignal is stationed on the intersection of Main and Tenth, Main Streetis readable on opposite sides of the housing confronting Tenth -Street,and Tenth Street discernible on the sides confronting Main Street.

on the lowerend of the last said housing is an. I outwardly extendingannular flange 20, to prevent the flow of light between the housing andthe glass panels in housing 7, by which required that a segmentalenclosure 21 be;

means the indiciain the sidewalls of housing 19 is more clearly definedas the light appears through the apertures forming the letters of thename. i

It will be understood that the housing is rigidly maintained in oneposition,'the flange thereof being wide enough to close the diagonalspace between the corners of said housing and housing 7 when the sidewalls thereof are parallel with each other, therefore it is placed onthe extensions of housings 2, to receive the periphery of the flange,the said flange so engaging will also function as bracing means forhousing 2 in its rotation; however, it is not intended that the saidflange will contact with thehousing 2 at any time. It will be furtherunderstood that thelower end of housing 19 is open and the inside wallsthereof beingbright will function as reflectors, itis readily seenthat asingle light concentrically positioned, or practically so, and havingthe reflector elements heretofore described, will be capableofilluminating the interior, thereby rendering all of said indiciareadable and also emphasizing the color scheme.

As rotating means for the signal I have provided a handle 22 rigidlyattached to pipe 10 near the lower end thereof, the said handlereciprocatingly engaging in a slot 23, by

which means when said handle is rocked to one end of the slot the signalplates are transversely positioned to or caused to confront with thestreet longitudinally; for example,

, the indicia will read Stop and when rocked It will be understood thatthe signal, as

supported by the pedestal, may also be power actuated by applying amechanical power drive within an annular extension positioned I on theshaft of the pedestal. 1

Such other modifications may be employed as lie within the scope oftheappended claims.

I claim:

1. In a trafiic signal" device, a signal hous-g ing of the kinddescribed, a pedestal rotatably supporting the housing, a pipedownwardly extending into thepedestal and rigidly carried thereby,functioning as a conduit, an electric lamp attached to the upper end ofthe pipe, a housing having arms attached to the upper end of said pipe,said housing axially aligned with said pipe, the numbers or names of thestreets cut through the sides of the last said housing, glass panels'in'first saidhousing in close proximity to the sides of second said housingand in registry therewith, so that when the first said housing rotatesto the parallel alignment'of the glass panels to the sides of the secondsaid housing the numbers or names are readable therethrough, the secondhousing remaining in one position at all times, means to operate thespace between the stationary housing, a concave reflector concentricallypositioned in the rotatable housing as lightrefraction means forthe'interior of both of said housings, a

downward extending pipe from the rotatable housing to rotatably engagein the shaft of the pedestal, a slot transversely positioned in thepedestal, ahandle rigidly attached to the lower end of the last saidpipe, the handle to reciprocatingly engage in the said slot .as turningmeans for therotatable housing to the equivalent of a quadrant to andfor,all substantially as shown. 1 i

2. In a traffic signal device, a. signal of. the

kind described, a plurality of tangentially positioned indicia platescomprising an'opaque member having words out through and a translucentmember to cover thesameon the exterior, one pair of the signals to havethe word Stop, the other pair transversely to the first said pair tohave the word Go thereon, upward extension of the housingconcentrical-1y positioned to the signal plates and having translucent panels in thesides thereof, a stationary housing centrally positioned in the upperextension having the name or number 5 of the streets cut through thesides thereof and readable through said translucent panels, webbingextending from the vertical corner of the said upward extension andextending outward in vertical alignment with the tangent-- iallypositioned signal plates means to rotate the first said housing to theextent of a quadrant at each interval as controlling means for thetra-flic at the intersection of highways. In testimony whereof I aflixmy signature.

' LEO M. TORRENCE.

